


Dark

by Valerin Berenghar (Valerin)



Series: Glimpse [2]
Category: Cursed (TV 2020)
Genre: Angst, Coda, Gen, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-22
Updated: 2020-11-22
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:07:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 685
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27671794
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Valerin/pseuds/Valerin%20Berenghar
Summary: Everything that could ache, ached. Lancelot couldn’t tell what hurt the most; the gaping hunger that gnawed away at his insides, or the vivid headache that with each pulse stirred up nausea, or the angry pinch in his ribs as he breathed in and out. The stillness surrounding them only magnified every sound, every sensation – from the rocking gait as Goliath sluggishly followed the beaten path, to the whisper from the tree crowns above as the wind pulled through. The sky peeked through the mosaic of greenery, heavy with crimson clouds that promised nightfall.-A standalone prompt fill.
Relationships: Squirrel | Percival & The Weeping Monk | Lancelot (Cursed)
Series: Glimpse [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2023433
Kudos: 20
Collections: Netflix's Cursed - Monthly prompts picked by a cursed bot!





	Dark

**Author's Note:**

> Reposted because I wanted my prompt fills to be a set of series rather than gathered in one story. :) 
> 
> \--
> 
> This was written for the "Dark" prompt generated from our prompt channel on the [Lancewain Discord Server](https://discord.gg/j3sc7pSKAq) \-- come and hang out with us! 
> 
> This was originally written as a roleplay starter back in July -- it's probably one of my very first texts within the Cursed fandom. I decided to modify it slightly because I thought the idea of them riding through the approaching dark would fit this prompt rather well. If you think some of the sentences sound similar to what you've read in Devil Like Me and alike then yeah, busted -- I'm horrible when it comes to reusing old lines from roleplays. :)

Everything that could ache, ached. Lancelot couldn’t tell what hurt the most; the gaping hunger that gnawed away at his insides, or the vivid headache that with each pulse stirred up nausea, or the angry pinch in his ribs as he breathed in and out. The stillness surrounding them only magnified every sound, every sensation – from the rocking gait as Goliath sluggishly followed the beaten path, to the whisper from the tree crowns above as the wind pulled through. The sky peeked through the mosaic of greenery, heavy with crimson clouds that promised nightfall.

The stallion hung his head low, dark ears folded back. Lancelot couldn’t tell for how long they had ridden since their last break, but the heavy rise and fall of the steed’s flanks told him that it was enough for one day.

“The horse is tired,” he said quietly, voice hoarse from all the hours of not talking. They hadn’t exchanged more than a handful of words since escaping the camp; compared to the last time they had journeyed together, Percival was a shadow of his talkative self.

A beat of silence passed, and then another. When it became apparent that there wouldn’t come a reply, Lancelot gingerly shifted behind the boy, back stretching as he leaned forth just the slightest to glimpse over the boy’s shoulder. He watched the flicker of Percival’s eyelashes as the boy seemed to have pinned his gaze somewhere far off in the distance – one blink, and then another, and another.

“Percival,” he tried again, stronger this time.

The boy remained still in his arms; the air of defiance was as prominent as the chill. He let out a shaky breath as he renewed his grip on the reins but immediately met resistance. Where he was shortening the reins for the steed to halt, Percival tugged on the reins in the other direction, fighting to give the horse the long reins it needed to continue walking. The leather creaked under their minuscule tug-of-war.

“Percival.”

The boy let out a sharp breath, shoulders squaring. “He can walk for a little longer.”

“No, he can’t—”

“—you won’t be able to get up in the saddle again if we stop,” Percival snapped.

Even Goliath clipped his ears at the sudden outburst. Lancelot’s heart hammered in his chest. The steed chewed on the bit and for an agonizing moment, it felt like the hollow sound was the only thing that tested the silence between them. His grip fell lax around the reins as the words and its significance dawned; he could practically hear Father’s scoffing inside his mind at the thought that he’d managed to become a burden to a mere child.

When they’d stopped for water earlier, Percival had used every ounce of his strength to help him up in the saddle again as the pain had been great enough to eat away at the edges of his vision. He couldn’t understand why the boy hadn’t left him to rot in the forest and ridden off with Goliath; the steed could easily travel at double the speed with only a child on his back. Lancelot knew he was dead weight; a living, breathing corpse and yet, Percival was stubborn about dragging him along.

Lancelot wasn’t sure about why. Perhaps it was some long-winded attempt to bring him to justice before the Fey, to share the blood lust of finally ending the terror that was the Weeping Monk. If he were in Percival’s shoes, he probably would have played the long con if that meant a shot at vengeance. In a sense, he supposed he’d already done that when he’d brought back the pestilence that was responsible for so much death; his red brothers had cheered loud when he’d brought back the Green Knight.

“We have to ride on,” Percival continued after a while, this time with less edge, “we need to find Nimue and the others. They’ll help us—they’ll help you.”

As they rode into that cold night, Lancelot thought that perhaps there was a speck of truth behind those words. Perhaps it wasn’t vengeance they were after.

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos and comments are always welcomed. I'm also on Tumblr if you want to follow me there -- [Valerin Berenghar.](https://valerin-berenghar.tumblr.com/)


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